Fireworks safety stressed ahead of Fourth of July holiday

LA CROSSE, Wis. (WEAU) -- Many people will be lighting up the sky with fireworks this Fourth of July, which is why on Tuesday, the La Crosse Public Library and the La Crosse Skyrockers held a demonstration to teach parents and kids fireworks safety.

“Fireworks are beautiful but they are dangerous,”said Pat Bonadurer, the president of the Skyrockers.

Pat explained even the littlest fireworks can do the most damage.

“Firecrackers could go off early and if they go off early they can cause some trauma to your skin. Sparklers have intense heat, I mean you got a lot of heat going and they do cause very serious burns,” said Bonadurer.

Kelsey Johnson-Kaiser with the library said holding the demonstration wasn’t just for the kids but also for the parents.

“They might not be aware of the proper way to handle fireworks so it's something that can be really good and can education younger and older kids as well as parents,” Johnson-Kaiser said.

Doris Faucheux brought her four kids to the demonstration, she told WEAU 13 News she thought it would be a good demonstration for her kids to watch.

“They're getting bigger and bigger and experimenting more with stuff like this so I figured it would be a good thing for them to watch,” Faucheux said.

She added she also makes sure her children aren’t near each other if they’re holding sparklers.

Bounadurer said if you’re thinking about bringing your own fireworks to a professional show, you should think twice.

"Once again when you're with thousands of people watching a show, keep the fireworks in the show and not in the crowd,” Bounadurer said.

He added you should wear eye protection when lighting up fireworks to help reduce the risk of eye damage if a spark gets away.

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